Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

It's even worse than that. A space elevator, the only thing that could conceivably replace rockets, requires materials so strong that they don't exist in our universe.

Space is like the internet. You can communicate through it, but sending matter is nigh impossible.



Not true - an orbital ring doesn't require any scifi materials, though the engineering is not yet there. And you can build magnetic accelerators, that's fully possible with current knowledge of science and engineering.


I don't see that kind of macroengineering as plausible.


I don't see it plausible in our today's social and political situation, but that's not set in stone. Technically and economically it's possible.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: